Oh My, Haven't Seen This in a While!

[jkumpire]

Please look at these photos, and tell me what you think. OHSAA umpires, please look at his hat. This is the winners' bracket final of a District Legion tournament.

I was listening to this game on the radio yesterday as I traveled to my game. other than a question about a LH balking, the radio guys thought the umpires did a good job, fwiw. But......

http://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.c...arams=Itemnr=2
(Don't know where the throw came from, but he looks okay here)
http://www.zanesvilletimesrecorder.c...arams=Itemnr=3 (at least he is in a good position to make the call)

[LilLeaguer]

Red socks?

[BretMan]

Haven't seen an Elbeco shirt for awhile...

[bobbybanaduck]

he, obviously, is bringing sexy back.

[officialtony]

I don't see a problem with the hat. It lets people know that you care enough about the rules to be certified by the state. American Legion IS OBR rules, but at least you know the umpire has some decent training at some point. In our area up here, most everybody who wears the NAVY blue OHSAA shirts will wear their OHSAA hats with them. Many of the guys who do summer ball do not own any color shirt BUT NAVY, so they wear them year round. And I have NEVER heard any association up here demand that their umpires NOT wear OHSAA clothing unless they are doing an OHSAA game.
I own several different color shirts and have a Black Hat and Black Ball Bags to go with the Black, White, or Cream shirts I wear. I think it looks more professional to wear that combo together.
I'm not sure what your observation about the photos is concerned with. If it is because it IS OHSAA, I am fine with that. I am disappointed in the shirt however.

Looked at the pictures again. The shirt COULD be Blue.

Red Socks!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

[Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.]

That shirt is not an Ebeco shirt. It looks like a white short sleeve dress shirt. Frankly, I am appalled that an OhioHSAA official would wear his hat while wearing a shirt like that (not to mention the red socks) during summer league play. It just looks so unprofessional. And while we are talking about unprofessional looking umpires, you should see some of the umpires the umpire baseball in the City of Toledo (Ohio) Park and Recreation Youth Leagues. They would make any respectable official upchuck their breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

MTD, Sr.

[BretMan]

A white shirt? I hadn't considered that.

Looks like a light blue shirt to me, with the color washed out in the photo due to the sunny lighting. Compare the shirt to the white uniform worn by the player. The uniform looks bright white and the shirt seems to have a blue tint to it.

But I'll take this guy over the umpire I saw at a tournament last weekend.

Pants- faded to the point of getting that purple look to them, with ragged bottoms at the hem.
Shoes- mud encrusted.
Shirt- obvously unwashed and residing in the trunk of his car.
Ball bag- couldn't have been nastier if you had purposely rolled it in the dirt.
Hat- the topper (literally). Faded, filthy and frayed around the brim (like those "pre-ripped" hats that are sold that way), with chunks of material hanging down.

And the guy had long, greasy hair that looked like he just jumped out of bed and ran his fingers through it. Pretty much the worst looking umpire I have ever seen. I'll take the "Elbeco/red sock guy" any day!

[lawump]

Originally Posted by LilLeaguer

Red socks?

What's the saying? "Baseball's the greatest sport because any day you could see something you've never seen before!"

[mbyron]

Originally Posted by OHSAA

OHSAA Required Uniforms
Baseball

The approved uniform for interscholastic baseball umpires is the Fechheimer gray color pants with an MLU navy shirt with the OHSAA embroidered logo on the right breast. Undershirts or t-shirts shall be red. When needed, a navy blue jacket or coat shall be worn. Official OHSAA logo officials apparel shall be purchased from one of the authorized dealers listed above. All umpires on a crew must be dressed alike. Navy caps with OHSAA printed in block letters on the crown must be worn and shall be purchased only from authorized dealers. Any other emblems or patches are not permitted on the officiating uniform. Jewelry may not be worn except wedding band, medical ID, or religious medal.
Penalty - Fine not to exceed $100.

Nothing mentioned here about red socks - maybe it was a one-piece with his red undershirt.

From what I hear, OHSAA is thinking of transitioning to black shirts for school ball. Just whispers at this point - wouldn't want to move too fast here. Yeah, we're cutting edge.

I NEVER wear OHSAA gear for summer or fall ball, or indeed for anything other than OHSAA games. In my experience, the guys who do this either (a) claim they can't afford another shirt and cap, or (b) feel that they need to prove something (their umpiring is not its own credential), or both.

[BretMan]

Originally Posted by msavakinas

I am an OHSAA guy, and have never even seen that Hat before. It looks like real small print and nothing compared to any of my OHSAA hats.

Jeeze, this is turning into the "Ohio guys" thread...

I see you're also a Columbus guy to boot. Bet you bought your hats at Flemings.

Honigs used to sell OHSAA hats through their website that had a smaller, thinner font. I can recall seeing only one or two of those in actual use out on the field. I *think* (haven't checked in awhile) that they have since changed the font, but it still might be a little bit different than what you're used to seeing.

The passage quoted from the OHSAA handbook involves a fine for failure to wear the proper uniform while officiating an OHSAA game. They have no jurisdiction over their members in non-OHSAA contests. The fine I mentioned is just the opposite. It would be levied by our local association for wearing OHSAA gear in a non-OHSAA game.